Christmas is around the corner so I thought this week I’d take a step away from my job and instead tackle a tricky subject that’s started coming up every year with more and more voracity.
There is a certain kind of honesty you find in performing to drunk people. I’m not talking about completely off their trolley, sailing four sheets to the wind, no naked flames within 10 feet drunk, more the ‘I don’t care if this is rude, I’m going to tell you I don’t think this is any good’ drunk. When people aren’t shackled by the social norms of politeness it can be very thin ice.
Read MoreA common exchange at one of my gigs:
“Wow, how did you do that?”Read More
“He’s not going to tell you, that would be breaking the magician’s code.”
Me: Enigmatic smile as I leave, often tripping over and destroying all illusion that I have any mystery about me.
Today is Sunday the 12th of November, Remembrance Sunday. As a country we pause and reflect on the horrors of war, remember those who have sacrificed so much for all of us, and make a simple pledge; Never Again. I wanted to take just a moment to thank every person who has served so that I can enjoy the freedoms I do. Thank you.
Read MoreMagicians are a fun breed. Whilst thinking about it the other day, I realised that a lot of my friends who perform magic are amazingly creative in ways other than the tricks and illusions they are known for. I thought that this might be an interesting thing to talk about today, letting you know a bit about what they do to express themselves other than messing with the minds of Muggles.
Read MoreI’ve sat down to write this blog and had intended to make it all about the nature of truth and trust (yes, seriously). But two sentences in and on the TV a program called Discovering Groucho Marx has started, and that’s me done.
Read MoreA lot has been said in the past about medium events, and before you roll your eyes at anther soulless, sceptical magician claiming there is nothing more than is dreamed of in his philosophy, I’m not here to say whether or not people can commune with the dead.
Read MoreA little while ago an annoyingly talanted friend of mine, Henri White, put on a wonderful night at the Magic Circle where he interviewed four great magicians and asked them about a magic trick that had made a difference to them, and one they had performed
Read MoreI’m 38. I only really started pursuing magic as a profession recently. I’ve had nothing but support from friends, family and colleagues. It’s exciting for me to be walking this path, creating and performing magic and actually getting paid to do so.
Read MoreI love performing to people. Love it. Like many magicians I actually struggle in social situations, and so magic is my crutch, my machete to help me hack my way through loud, scary crowds.
Read More“You’re the best magician I’ve ever seen!”
I love it when I hear that. It’s a fantastic compliment and quite often a much needed shot of adrenalin to the ego. When someone pays you that kind of compliment it’s hard to know what to do that doesn’t involve you just looking smug. It is, however, very important to remember that when someone says that, there is one very important caveat they are probably leaving out. Really that compliment should be:
Read MoreTurning down gigs is an odd thing to do, but now and then I’ve been known to. It happened to me just the other day. It was a wedding I had been asked to cover. It was short notice but not bad money and so I was tempted as I had no other gigs that day. But I turned it down. Why? Why would I do that? Simply put to me it would have been just another gig, but to the couple getting married it was probably one of the most important days of their life. I didn't think that that would be fair.
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